Various portions of the spinal column may become displaced or damaged due to trauma, disease or aging. Treatment procedures may involve removal of at least a portion of one or more vertebral bodies and/or intervertebral disc tissue. Several techniques are currently available for restoring and maintaining the axial space between two vertebral bodies following removal of vertebral bone and/or tissue from the area between the vertebral bodies. Restoration and support of the axial space is sometimes accomplished by attaching one or more plates and/or rods to outer surfaces of the vertebral bodies to bridge the intervertebral space. In other instances, an implant is inserted into the intervertebral space to provide the requisite amount of axial support. Additionally, a bone growth inducing material is sometimes introduced into the intervertebral space to facilitate the formation of a solid bony connection between the vertebral bodies. For example, previous vertebral body replacement implants include allograft, silicone tubing filled with cement, cages and other types of fusion devices or materials. However, adjustability is a feature that most of these techniques fail to provide. Subsidence into the adjacent vertebral bodies is also a drawback prevalent in previous vertebrectomy options.
Access to a displaced or damaged portion of the spinal column may be accomplished via several approaches. One approach is to gain access to the anterior portion of the spine through the patient's chest or abdomen. However, significant morbidity may ensue and many vertebral levels are not readily accessible via an anterior approach, particularly with regard to the upper thoracic or upper lumbar vertebral levels. A posterior approach may also be used and provides a number of advantages, but may be associated with considerable difficulty in the reconstruction of the spinal column. In particular, the presence of the spinal cord and the inherent risks associated with retraction and manipulation of this structure limits access to the intervertebral space that lies anterior to the spinal cord. While it is desirable that implants should distribute the loads of the spinal column evenly and widely across the vertebral endplates, the introduction of currently available implants requires considerable retraction and/or manipulation of the spinal cord, thereby increasing the potential for complications.
Thus, there is a general need in the industry to provide an improved apparatus and method for supporting vertebral bodies following a vertebrectomy. The present invention meets this need and provides other benefits and advantages in a novel and unobvious manner.